C.W. Post Graduates Help Transform Roosevelt Library Program

Innovative approach to student internships contributes to school revitalization

February 27, 2003 — When the school year began in the Roosevelt School District (Roosevelt, NY) in September, two elementary schools were already dealing with serious challenges. Washington Rose School had books on its library shelves that were sorely out of date and virtually no money to purchase new ones.

Inspectors had condemned an entire wing of Ulysses Byas School, a wing that contained the school library. The situation was another chapter in a district history that includes low test scores and a recent state takeover.

Enter two recent graduates of the Palmer School of Library and Information Science at the C.W. Post Campus of Long Island University in Brookville, N.Y. In fall 2002, Amber Fink and Sara Severtsen landed positions as school media specialists during their last semester at C.W. Post. In an unusual arrangement, the positions served as the internship required by the university program. Together they are rebuilding their respective library programs and, in the process, helping the district to rebuild.

"I think that school media specialists are very, very important people in schools," says Dr. Bea Baaden, Ed.D., a professor in the Palmer School who advised the students during their internships. "They are often overlooked, and yet the service they provide in the school when it comes to literacy and reading and information literacy, learning how to learn skills, is invaluable."

Amber Fink, who works in Ulysses Byas School, is building a library program from scratch. When she arrived for work in the beginning of the school year, she discovered that she could not enter the condemned library - not even to retrieve books, supplies or furniture. She didn’t even have a desk or a room. She eventually received a room, which she has gradually transformed into a library by obtaining book donations from Scholastic and other generous publishers and supplies from other districts. With Dr. Baaden’s help, she is labeling and cataloging the books by hand.

"I had no idea there was no library or anything of that nature, so it was a complete surprise when I got there," says Fink, a 26-year-old Hicksville resident who previously worked in publishing. "But I’m probably more creative than I would have been with lessons, trying to come up with things the kids can do." She has, for example, taught her students the parts of a book by having them make books of their own.

Sara Severtsen of Baldwin worked as a classroom teacher before earning her Master of Science in Library Science from C.W. Post. When she came to Washington Rose School in September, she found outdated books and few materials. She immediately set about developing a full school media program that is garnering accolades throughout her school.

The successes of Fink and Severtsen bodes well for the entire Roosevelt district, says Dr. Arnold B. Goldberg, director of personnel in the Roosevelt district. "It’s been a successful experience for the district, as we were able to employ our candidates who were close to completing their certification and provide them with a full-time, paid internship experience," says Dr. Goldberg. "The experience proved to be increasingly positive over time. Roosevelt is a district that is moving forward in many ways, and this experience is one example of the district’s progress."